E-RYT 500, YACEP

Although now yoga is part of my daily routine and my career as well, there was a time in a former life when I worked a desk job like many of you do now and felt like there was no time for working out. And although I have been blessed with not having had to struggle with weight issues, there was also a time when that sedentary lifestyle put a few more pounds on my 5’3″ frame than I was comfortable with. But any time I tried to “diet” or exercise in order to lose weight or get fit, inevitably my motivation faltered and I got little to no results. However, once I delved deeper into yoga and really started getting excited about it, my weight naturally stabilized and I felt healthier and more energetic. You see, once my motivation came from within, the internal fire of tapas, or discipline, was ignited. Instead of watching the numbers on a scale go down, I was determined to make it through an entire class without skipping a chaturanga. Instead of forcing myself to work out a certain number of times a week, I was motivated to practice more often because I wanted to nail that new pose that I couldn’t do last time. So maybe yoga isn’t your thing and you only do it because it’s good for you. That’s fine, but I encourage you to try to find that thing that does excite you. Maybe it’s walking an extra mile or lifting ten more pounds. Whatever floats your navasana, it doesn’t really matter as long as it’s yours. Norman Sjoman said, “What makes something yoga is not what is done, but how it is done.” Anything done mindfully, with both discipline and compassion, that connects mind, body, and spirit, and can be done with a smile is yoga.

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Comments on: "Goals and Motivation" (1)

Well said! If there is one thing I would have to add is that when you find that thing you really enjoy doing it’s going to be great but eventually it’s also going to push you and poke you in all the places you’ve been trying to hide from or cover and it might suck on some days but it’ll be ok, it’s just a fire that has to burn away all of the old stuff before it stops smoking and starts to burn clean.